THE THEOLOGIAN David Hart famously wrote that Europe is dying of metaphysical boredom. That may be true. But surely unseriousness has something to do with it, too. For the latest example of European dithering, we turn to the Republic of Ireland.

In the waning days of April, Ireland’s parliament, the Dáil, was dissolved and new elections were called. The sitting prime minister (the Irish call the position the taoiseach) was a fellow named Bertie Ahern, who led the center-left Fianna Fáil party. Because Ireland, like many American big cities, has no right wing, the contest was between Fianna Fáil and its smaller center-left coalition partners and a more radical coalition of Ireland’s Fine Gael, Labour, and Green parties.